Phys.org news tagged with:european southern observatoryhttp://phys.org/
en-usPhys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine.Paranal and La Palma sites chosen for final negotiations to host world's largest array of gamma-ray telescopesOn 15 and 16 July 2015, the Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA) Resource Board decided to enter into detailed contract negotiations for hosting CTA on the European Southern Observatory (ESO) Paranal grounds in Chile and at the Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias (IAC), Roque de los Muchachos Observatory in La Palma, Spain.http://phys.org/news/2015-07-paranal-la-palma-sites-chosen.html
Space Exploration Fri, 17 Jul 2015 04:06:58 EDTnews356324805Observing the birth of a planetAstronomers at ETH Zurich have confirmed the existence of a young giant gas planet still embedded in the midst of the disk of gas and dust surrounding its parent star. For the first time, scientists are able to directly study the formation of a planet at a very early stage.http://phys.org/news/2015-07-birth-planet.html
Astronomy Wed, 01 Jul 2015 11:39:30 EDTnews354969561Leonard nimoy's legacy lives on in the asteroid belt"Fascinating, Captain." If he were alive today, Leonard Nimoy, who played the half Vulcan-half human Mr. Spock in the Star Trek TV and movies series, would undoubtedly have raised an eyebrow and uttered a signature "fascinating" at the news this week that an asteroid now bears his name.http://phys.org/news/2015-06-leonard-nimoy-legacy-asteroid-belt.html
Space Exploration Mon, 08 Jun 2015 10:00:01 EDTnews352970498Distant moons may provide evidence of life beyond Earth, researchers sayIs there life beyond Earth? The answer to that age-old question may be on a moon we can't yet see.http://phys.org/news/2015-06-distant-moons-evidence-life-earth.html
Astronomy Mon, 01 Jun 2015 06:31:01 EDTnews352359051Shining message about the end of the Dark AgesAn international team, including researchers from the Centre for Astronomy of Heidelberg University (ZAH), has discovered three "cosmic Methusalems" from the earliest years of the universe. These unusual stars are about 13 billion years old and experts assign them to the first generations of stars after the "dark ages". The chemical qualities of these extremely rare stellar bodies enable new insights into the events that must have led to the origins of the stars. The first stars have been assumed to be high-mass and to shine especially brightly. However, the latest observations point to hitherto unknown phenomena in the young universe, allowing for the emergence of much smaller stars. This conclusion is suggested by analyses in part conducted at the State Observatory Königstuhl and at the Institute of Theoretical Astrophysics, both of which belong to the ZAH.http://phys.org/news/2015-05-message-dark-ages.html
Astronomy Thu, 28 May 2015 09:46:26 EDTnews352025179Magnetospheres: Researcher works to debunk the theory behind massive starsQueen's University PhD student Matt Shultz is researching magnetic, massive stars, and his research has uncovered questions concerning the behaviour of plasma within their magnetospheres.http://phys.org/news/2015-05-magnetospheres-debunk-theory-massive-stars.html
Astronomy Tue, 26 May 2015 07:37:23 EDTnews351844625Researchers obtain spectrum information for nearby exoplanetScientists at the Institute of Astrophysics of the Canaries (IAC), together with collaborators at the Centre of Astrobiology (CAB) and the Polytechnic University of Cartagena (UPCT), have obtained an image of a giant planet of some 11 times the mass of Jupiter orbiting a red dwarf star 40 light years away. These results have been published in The Astrophysical Journal.http://phys.org/news/2015-05-spectrum-nearby-exoplanet.html
Astronomy Wed, 13 May 2015 05:38:59 EDTnews350714324Potential signs of 'interacting' dark matter suggest it is not completely dark after allAstronomers believe they might have observed the first potential signs of dark matter interacting with a force other than gravity.http://phys.org/news/2015-04-potential-interacting-dark.html
Astronomy Tue, 14 Apr 2015 19:00:01 EDTnews348249943Intergalactic GPS will guide you through the starsLost in the Universe? Need some precise navigation through the bulk of stars in the night sky? Don't worry, there will be an instrument for that - the Multi-Object Optical and Near-infrared Spectrograph (MOONS) at the European Southern Observatory's (ESO) Very Large Telescope (VLT) in northern Chile. The spectrograph, dubbed the intergalactic GPS, will help us navigate through the billions of stars in our galaxy and create a comprehensive map of its structure. "One of the first science cases is to help build up maps of the central region of our galaxy," William Taylor of the UK Astronomy Technology Centre (UK ATC) in Edinburgh, UK, told astrowatch.net. "With infrared light we have the power to see through the dust that obscures many of the objects in the central region of our galaxy, and so we can map the speeds and types of stars in the central bulge of the Milky Way."http://phys.org/news/2015-03-intergalactic-gps-stars.html
Astronomy Tue, 10 Mar 2015 06:56:19 EDTnews345189363Thermonuclear supernova ejects our galaxy's fastest star (w/ video)Scientists using the W. M. Keck Observatory and Pan-STARRS1 telescopes on Hawaii have discovered a star that breaks the galactic speed record, traveling with a velocity of about 1,200 kilometers per second or 2.7 million miles per hour. This velocity is so high, the star will escape the gravity of our galaxy. In contrast to the other known unbound stars, the team showed that this compact star was ejected from an extremely tight binary by a thermonuclear supernova explosion. These results will be published in the March 6 issue of Science.http://phys.org/news/2015-03-thermonuclear-supernova-ejects-galaxy-fastest.html
Astronomy Thu, 05 Mar 2015 18:19:34 EDTnews344801955Research suggests Mars once had more water than Earth's Arctic oceanA primitive ocean on Mars held more water than Earth's Arctic Ocean, according to NASA scientists who, using ground-based observatories, measured water signatures in the Red Planet's atmosphere.http://phys.org/news/2015-03-mars-earth-arctic-ocean.html
Space Exploration Thu, 05 Mar 2015 18:03:16 EDTnews344800989Hunting transiting exoplanetsEuropean Southern Observatory (ESO) gears up for the exoplanet hunting. The Next-Generation Transit Survey (NGTS), a wide-field observing system made up of an array of twelve telescopes was installed at ESO's Paranal Observatory in Chile. It will search for transiting exoplanets—planets that pass in front of their parent star and hence produce a slight dimming of the star's light that can be detected by sensitive instruments. "NGTS will have some sensitivity to habitable zone planets - these are planets at the right distance from their star that they would receive similar amounts of heat as the Earth does," Don Pollacco of the University of Warwick (UK) told astrowatch.net.http://phys.org/news/2015-03-transiting-exoplanets.html
Space Exploration Mon, 02 Mar 2015 07:12:09 EDTnews344502716Team in breakthrough research to discover new planetsScientists from Queen's University Belfast have partnered with leading astrophysicists across Europe for a ground-breaking space research project that will form a crucial step in the quest to study small, rocky planets orbiting other stars and discover new planets.http://phys.org/news/2015-01-team-breakthrough-planets.html
Astronomy Wed, 14 Jan 2015 02:52:50 EDTnews340426363New insights on the origin of the triple asteroid system (87) SylviaCombining observations from the world's largest telescopes with those from smaller instruments used by amateur astronomers, a team of scientists has discovered that the large main-belt asteroid (87) Sylvia has a complex interior. This has been deduced by using the motions of the two moons orbiting the main asteroid as probes of the object's density distribution. The complex structure is probably linked to the way the multiple system was formed.http://phys.org/news/2014-10-insights-triple-asteroid-sylvia.html
Space Exploration Fri, 24 Oct 2014 08:10:01 EDTnews333356374New radio telescope ready to probeWhirring back and forth on a turning turret, the white, 40-foot dish evokes the aura of movies such as "Golden Eye" or "Contact," but the University of Arizona team of scientists and engineers that commissioned it earlier this month isn't planning to listen for signals from extraterrestrials or hijack satellites.http://phys.org/news/2014-10-radio-telescope-ready-probe.html
Astronomy Tue, 21 Oct 2014 07:40:01 EDTnews333095187UK to build unique intergalactic GPS instrument to map the starsA €9M contract is announced today for UK-based engineers and designers to build a unique and powerful instrument that aims to tackle some of the most compelling astronomical puzzles – such as how stars and galaxies form and evolve, and probing the structure of our own Milky Way.http://phys.org/news/2014-09-uk-unique-intergalactic-gps-instrument.html
Astronomy Mon, 29 Sep 2014 05:49:11 EDTnews331188542Astronomers unveil secrets of giant elliptical galaxiesNew findings of how giant elliptical galaxies move have been discovered by an international team of astronomers using the newly installed Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) at the European Southern Observatory's (ESO) Very Large Telescope (VLT) facility.http://phys.org/news/2014-09-astronomers-unveil-secrets-giant-elliptical.html
Astronomy Fri, 12 Sep 2014 08:53:25 EDTnews329730795Image: Rosetta comet observed with Very Large Telescope(Phys.org) —Since early August 2014, Rosetta has been enjoying a close-up view of comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko. Meanwhile, astronomers on Earth have been busy following the comet with ground-based telescopes. As Rosetta is deep inside the 'atmosphere' coma – it was 100 km from the nucleus on 6 August, and has been getting much closer since then – the only way to view the whole comet is to 'stand back' and observe it from Earth.http://phys.org/news/2014-09-image-rosetta-comet-large-telescope.html
Space Exploration Mon, 08 Sep 2014 09:00:01 EDTnews329384870Evidence of forming planet discovered 335 light years from EarthAn international team of scientists led by a Clemson University astrophysicist has discovered new evidence that planets are forming around a star about 335 light years from Earth.http://phys.org/news/2014-09-evidence-planet-years-earth.html
Astronomy Thu, 04 Sep 2014 17:10:42 EDTnews329069342Amazing video timelapse of big telescopes at work in ChileWhat's it like to spend a night at a huge telescope observatory? Jordi Busque recorded a brilliant timelapse of the Very Large Telescope (VLT) and the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA). What makes this video unique is not only the exotic location in Chile, but the use of sound in the area rather than music.http://phys.org/news/2014-09-amazing-video-timelapse-big-telescopes.html
Astronomy Wed, 03 Sep 2014 08:54:34 EDTnews328953264Astronomers bring the third dimension to a doomed star's outburst(Phys.org) —In the middle of the 19th century, the massive binary system Eta Carinae underwent an eruption that ejected at least 10 times the sun's mass and made it the second-brightest star in the sky. Now, a team of astronomers has used extensive new observations to create the first high-resolution 3-D model of the expanding cloud produced by this outburst.http://phys.org/news/2014-07-astronomers-dimension-doomed-star-outburst.html
Astronomy Tue, 08 Jul 2014 18:56:41 EDTnews324064584Supermassive black hole blows molecular gas out of a galaxy at 1 million kilometres per hour(Phys.org)—New research by academics at the University of Sheffield has solved a long-standing mystery surrounding the evolution of galaxies, deepening our understanding of the future of the Milky Way.http://phys.org/news/2014-07-supermassive-black-hole-molecular-gas.html
Astronomy Mon, 07 Jul 2014 10:06:23 EDTnews323946368The economic impact of a Very Large TelescopeThe European Southern Observatory's VLT, Very Large Telescope, is a group of four 8.2-metre diameter optical telescopes located in northern Chile. It also has four movable 1.8-metre diameter auxiliary telescopes and they all work together to act as what ESO calls a "giant interferometer". The overall resolution of this instrument is some 25 times higher with the system acting as an interferometer than is achievable with any of the individual telescopes.http://phys.org/news/2014-07-economic-impact-large-telescope.html
Astronomy Wed, 02 Jul 2014 08:30:01 EDTnews323507608Chile hilltop razed for world's largest telescope (Update)Construction on the world's largest optical telescope began with a bang Thursday, as workers demolished a hilltop in Chile's Atacama desert.http://phys.org/news/2014-06-chilean-mountaintop-blasted-giant-telescope.html
Astronomy Thu, 19 Jun 2014 15:00:02 EDTnews322406726Physics in Brazil takes center stage as World Cup comes to townAs Brazil gets set to host the 2014 FIFA World Cup this month amid concerns about the amount of public money being used to stage the world's largest sporting event, Physics World's editorial team reveals in a new special report how physicists are taking full advantage of the four-fold increase in science funding that the government has invested over the past 10 years.http://phys.org/news/2014-06-physics-brazil-center-stage-world.html
General Physics Mon, 02 Jun 2014 02:20:44 EDTnews320894431Stellar explosion on outer reaches of Universe provides clues about black hole formationOn 24 October 2012 observatories across the world were alerted about a huge stellar explosion, the GRB121024A. However, only the European Southern Observatory using its Very Large Telescope located in Chile managed to take accurate polarimetric measurements of the phenomenon. The data obtained on that explosion, which took place about 11,000 million years ago, have made it possible to reconstruct how a black hole is formed. The work, which has had the participation of the Ikerbasque researcher Javier Gorosabal, co-director of the Associated Unit with the Institute of Astrophysics of Andalusia/CSIC-UPV/EHU, has been published in the prestigious journal Nature.http://phys.org/news/2014-05-stellar-explosion-outer-universe-clues.html
Astronomy Wed, 07 May 2014 13:05:15 EDTnews318686699The changing laws that determine how dust affects the light that reaches us from the starsIf the space traversed by light to reach our eyes were empty, knowing the properties of a star could be as simple as taking a picture of it and measuring its glow (something known as photometry). But the interstellar environment is strewn with dust that absorbs and scatters light, making objects look less luminous and redder—or colder—than they actually are. A recently published paper makes it possible, at last, to correct this distorting effect adequately.http://phys.org/news/2014-04-laws-affects-stars.html
Astronomy Wed, 16 Apr 2014 10:11:17 EDTnews316859642Rosetta's comet wakes up(Phys.org) —It's back! After comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko had disappeared behind the Sun and out of the Earth's view last year in October, the target comet of ESA's Rosetta mission can now be seen again. In the most recent image obtained by researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research (MPS) in Germany and the European Southern Observatory (ESO) with the help of ESO's Very Large Telescope on February 28th, 2014, the comet presents itself brighter than expected for the nucleus alone. This suggests that frozen ice is already beginning to vaporize and form a very thin atmosphere. In August, the spacecraft Rosetta will rendezvous with 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko and accompany it on its journey around the Sun until at least the end of 2015.http://phys.org/news/2014-03-rosetta-comet.html
Space Exploration Mon, 10 Mar 2014 10:05:55 EDTnews313664732Every red dwarf star has at least one planetThree new planets classified as habitable-zone super-Earths are amongst eight new planets discovered orbiting nearby red dwarf stars by an international team of astronomers from the UK and Chile.http://phys.org/news/2014-03-red-dwarf-star-planet.html
Astronomy Tue, 04 Mar 2014 03:32:02 EDTnews313126310SMA unveils how small cosmic seeds grow into big starsNew images from the Smithsonian's Submillimeter Array (SMA) telescope provide the most detailed view yet of stellar nurseries within the Snake nebula. These images offer new insights into how cosmic seeds can grow into massive stars.http://phys.org/news/2014-02-sma-unveils-small-cosmic-seeds.html
Astronomy Wed, 26 Feb 2014 11:40:01 EDTnews312636504